Groupe PSA has obtained a licence to begin autonomous vehicle testing on public roads in Chongqing, China. As the first French car maker to do so in China, Groupe PSA is taking monumental strides in the development of vehicle connectivity and autonomous driving technology, and reinforces the group’s commitment to the Chinese market.
Groupe PSA’s autonomous car experience in Europe will help it to adapt to the local environment to meet Chinese market needs. The challenge is to integrate Groupe PSA’s technology into China’s ecosystem with special cases, since the environment, infrastructure, map system and road users are different.
Groupe PSA is the first car manufacturer to have tested an autonomous car on public roads in France from July 2015 onward, as well as the first vehicle OEM to obtain authorization to carry out autonomous vehicle tests with ‘non-expert’ drivers in March 2017.
Carla Gohin, VP of innovation at Groupe PSA, commented, “Obtaining the license for autonomous driving testing on open roads in China is a remarkable milestone for Groupe PSA, as China is the largest automobile market in the world and is witnessing a boom in the development of autonomous vehicle technology. This marks an important step for our AVA ‘Autonomous for All’ program, which aims to provide safe and intuitive autonomous cars for all customers. From this fresh start, we’ll continuously bring our cutting edge technology to Chinese customers.”